A7 Engineering EmbeddedBlue 505 User manual

EmbeddedBlue™505
User Manual

Part Number 0000112 – Revision A
Last revised on June 28, 2005 – Printed in the United States of America
A7 Engineering, Inc.
12860 C Danielson Court
Poway, CA 92064
Copyright ©2003-2005 A7 Engineering, Inc. All rights reserved. EmbeddedBlue is a
trademark of A7 Engineering, Inc. Bluetooth and the Bluetooth logo are registered
trademarks of the Bluetooth SIG. Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft
Corporation. Other brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of
their respective holders.
The information contained in this document is subject to change without notice. A7
Engineering, Inc. and its staff make no warranty of any kind for the correctness,
completeness, interpretation or use of the information contained herein. It is the user’s
responsibility to comply with all applicable copyright laws.
Life Support Policy and Use in Safety-Critical Applications:
A7’s products are not authorized for use in life-support or safety-critical applications. Use in
such applications is done at the sole discretion of the customer and A7 will not warrant or
authorize the use of its devices in such applications.

Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Introduction..............................................................................................................................1
Manual Conventions ............................................................................................................. 1
Getting More Information ...................................................................................................... 2
Bluetooth Overview.................................................................................................................3
What is Bluetooth? ................................................................................................................ 3
What is a Profile? .................................................................................................................. 4
Bluetooth and Wi-Fi............................................................................................................... 5
Security ................................................................................................................................. 5
The Basics................................................................................................................................7
Command Mode.................................................................................................................... 7
Data Mode............................................................................................................................. 7
Resetting the eb505 to the Factory Default Settings ............................................................ 8
Switching between Data Mode and Command Mode........................................................... 8
Hardware Connections ...........................................................................................................9
Command Set.........................................................................................................................11
Command Basics ................................................................................................................ 11
Connect ............................................................................................................................... 12
Delete Trusted Device......................................................................................................... 13
Disconnect........................................................................................................................... 14
Get Address ........................................................................................................................ 15
Get Connectable Mode ....................................................................................................... 16
Get Encrypt Mode ............................................................................................................... 17
Get Escape Character......................................................................................................... 18
Get Flow Control ................................................................................................................. 19
Get Link Timeout................................................................................................................. 20
Get Name ............................................................................................................................ 21
Get Security Mode............................................................................................................... 22
Get Visible Mode................................................................................................................. 23
Help ..................................................................................................................................... 24
List Trusted Devices............................................................................................................ 25
List Visible Devices ............................................................................................................. 26
Reset Factory Defaults........................................................................................................ 27
Return to Data Mode........................................................................................................... 28
Set Baud Rate..................................................................................................................... 29
Set Connectable Mode........................................................................................................ 30
Set Encrypt Mode................................................................................................................ 31
Set Escape Character ......................................................................................................... 32
Set Flow Control.................................................................................................................. 33
Set Link Timeout ................................................................................................................. 34
Set Name ............................................................................................................................ 35
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Table of Contents
Set Passkey.........................................................................................................................36
Set Security Mode ...............................................................................................................37
Set Visible Mode..................................................................................................................38
Switch to Command Mode...................................................................................................39
Version.................................................................................................................................40
Firmware Upgrade..................................................................................................................41
Upgrading the eb505 Firmware ...........................................................................................41
Error Codes.............................................................................................................................45
Technical Specifications.......................................................................................................47
Operating Parameters .........................................................................................................47
Dimensions ..........................................................................................................................48
Pin out..................................................................................................................................49
Frequently Asked Questions ................................................................................................51
Contact Information...............................................................................................................53
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Table of Figures
Table of Figures
Figure 1: eb505 Module.............................................................................................................9
Figure 2: eb505 Dimensions....................................................................................................48
EmbeddedBlue 505 User Manual ▪Page iii

Table of Tables
Table of Tables
Table 1: eb505 Error Codes.................................................................................................... 45
Table 2: eb505 Operating Parameters.................................................................................... 47
Table 3: eb505 Dimensions .................................................................................................... 48
Table 4: eb505 Pin out Description......................................................................................... 49
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Introduction
Introduction
Congratulations on your purchase of the EmbeddedBlue 505 (eb505) serial Bluetooth
module. The eb505 is designed for direct connection to microcontrollers with a 5V serial
interface enabling wireless communications with other Bluetooth devices including cellular
phones, handheld computers, PCs, and other serial port adapters. Hobbyists, developers,
and OEMs can take advantage of advanced wireless connectivity with this easy to use
module.
The eb505 module provides a point to point connection much like a standard serial cable.
Connections are made dynamically and can be established between two eb505 modules or
an eb505 module and a standard Bluetooth v1.1, v1.2, or v2.0 device. Devices can be
dynamically discovered and connected in an ad-hoc manner.
Manual Conventions
Below is a list of typographical conventions used in this manual:
Text in this font
•Is used to show data that is sent to the eb505.
•Inside a gray box is used to show data that is sent from
the eb505.
Text in this font
•Is used to show source code
In the command set section of this manual
•Required parameters and placeholders appear in standard lowercase type.
•Placeholders appear in
italics. For example, if address shows up in a syntax
line, the actual address of the device must be entered.
•Required parameter options are separated by a vertical bar |.
•Optional parameters are enclosed in brackets [ ].
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Introduction
Getting More Information
The Bluetooth website, www.bluetooth.com, contains the Bluetooth specification, profiles,
and other documents relevant to Bluetooth.
General information regarding the eb505 module, EmbeddedBlue, and other Bluetooth
products from A7 Engineering can be found on the A7 website at www.a7eng.com.
A7 Engineering provides technical support for EmbeddedBlue products through an online
discussion forum at www.a7eng.com/support/forum/forum.htm. When you visit the forum you
can search through previously asked questions for information or post new ones. The forum
is monitored by A7 Engineering employees so that your question will be answered in a
thorough and timely manner. If your question involves sensitive information you can request
private support by sending an email to [email protected].
A7 Engineering also provides professional design services on a contract basis to anyone
requiring assistance with their design and/or development of Bluetooth products. For further
information visit the A7 Engineering website www.a7eng.com/services/services.htm.
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Bluetooth Overview
Bluetooth Overview
What is Bluetooth?
To put it simply, Bluetooth is a technology standard for electronic devices to communicate
with each other using short-range radio. It is often referred to as a “cable replacement”
technology, because it is commonly used to connect things, such as cameras, headsets, and
mobile phones that have traditionally been connected by wires. Bluetooth is much more than
simply a way to cut the cord between today’s existing electronic devices. It is an enabling
technology that will take these devices to new levels of productivity and functionality and
enable a whole new class of devices designed with communications and connectivity in mind.
The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) defines Bluetooth a bit more broadly as the
"worldwide specification for small-form-factor, low-cost radio solutions that provide links
between mobile computers, mobile phones, other portable devices, and connectivity to the
Internet." In defining Bluetooth, the SIG has taken a very different approach than the IEEE
802.11 Committees did. Rather than build Bluetooth as an adjunct to TCP/IP, it was defined
as a standalone protocol stack that includes all layers required by an application. This means
that it encompasses not only wireless communications but also service advertisement,
addressing, routing, and a number of application-level interfaces referred to as profiles.
Bluetooth is based on a frequency hopping spread spectrum (FHSS) modulation technique.
The term spread spectrum describes a number of methods for spreading a radio signal over
multiple frequencies, either simultaneously (direct sequence) or in series (frequency
hopping.) Wi-Fi devices are based on direct sequence spread spectrum transmission which
uses multiple channels simultaneously. While this technique increases the speed of
transmission (for example in Wi-Fi from 1.5MHz to 11MHz), it is more susceptible to
interference from other radio sources as well as being a greater source of interference to the
surrounding area.
In contrast, Bluetooth utilizes the frequency hopping method of spread spectrum which uses
multiple radio channels to reduce interference and increase security. The signal is rapidly
switched from channel to channel many times per second in a pseudo-random pattern that is
known by both the sender and receiver(s). This provides robust recovery of packet errors
caused by interference from another radio source at a particular frequency. Also, data is
generally more secure because it is not possible to receive more than a fraction of the data
EmbeddedBlue 505 User Manual ▪Page 3

Bluetooth Overview
unless the hopping pattern is known. Bluetooth utilizes frequency hopping in the 2.4GHz
radio band and hops at a relatively fast pace with a raw data rate of about 1 Mbps. This
translates to about 700 kbps of actual useful data transfer. The eb505 module supports a
maximum sustained bidirectional data rate of 230.4kbps.
What is a Profile?
Bluetooth devices can support interoperability with one or more types of devices. In order for
two Bluetooth devices to communicate with each other, they must share at least one common
profile. If I want a Pocket PC to communicate with my EmbeddedBlue radio I need to make
sure that they both support the same profile. EmbeddedBlue devices support the Serial Port
Profile (SPP) which is one of the earliest
and most widely supported profiles.
The main elements of the Bluetooth
stack are shown in the figure to the right.
As with a typical diagram of the TCP/IP
stack, there are a number of details that
are hidden by the apparent simplicity of
the stack. Specifically, there are a
number of profiles that sit roughly on top
of the L2CAP layer that provide much of
the power (and also the complexity) of
the Bluetooth protocols.
These profiles are the primary entry into
the stack for an application. Essentially,
they define the set of services that are
available to that application. Currently
there are more than 25 different profiles
defined or in the process of being
defined by the Bluetooth SIG. With so
much variety, acquiring an in-depth
understanding of Bluetooth is not a trivial
task. However, the abstraction by a
single profile can provide an application
the use of the profile without such detailed knowledge.
There are a number of profiles that are exposed in very familiar forms. The eb505 module, for
instance, implements the SPP profile which enables it to appear like a traditional serial port.
This virtually eliminates the need for the user to have specific Bluetooth knowledge and
allows the radios to be integrated into applications very quickly.
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